Thursday, September 3, 2015

Change and Progress

Got a lotta stuff going on in my life. You know the stuff: job changes, death of a younger sibling, house move, low blood iron, pet's end of life, spouse with terminal illness... Okay, hopefully you aren't personally acquainted with the last one.
 I'm told that each one is a stress. Okay. How does THAT help me? It means I have to keep taking care of me. Like in the airplane, when the air host tells you that in an emergency you should put your oxygen mask on before the child's next to you, you can't help anyone if you collapse.

Life is all about ups and downs.  You've got to be strong to take on the world. You've got to be strong to take on life. I've discovered that health is a progression. It improves over time.
Try to do a little exercise if you are not currently active. It doesn't mean you have to get up and run a marathon tomorrow- it means you do a bit more than you did today. If you aren't doing any exercise, and you do 5 leg lifts while on the couch, you have improved! Hurray! Walk the length of the house, or the driveway, or the block. Whatever you can manage til you work up a light sweat. Do it for 3 days in a row, then increase it a bit. You just  made progress.
Work on your food choices. Of all the choices you make in a day, what is one change that you can make for the better? Add a salad a day to your meals? Swap a dessert for a fruit? Add a glass of water per day to your routine? Do something! It will soon add up to big successes.
And drop the guilt. It does nothing for you to whine and cry and say, Oh! Woe is me! I forgot to workout today- let's eat a pizza because I am now a failure!
If you haven't worked out, do it now. Or do it first thing in the morning. Add in little exercise breaks. 2 squats. 5 wall pushups. Sit in your chair and lift a can of soup in each hand.
Check back with your self in a month and see if there are changes. Are your clothes looser? Can you get farther than you used to? Hurray! Progress. It doesn't matter if it's slow- that is still progress. 

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